she was the row house girl from north philly taking the subway and bus up to chestnut hill. when she had a scholarship, she gave it up. she didn't want to take it from another girl who needed it. she had other plans. she joined the convent. when she told her mother the decision, her mother said wait until your father hears of this. when she told grand pop, he said do what will make you happy. and she did. well, here they are, the two of them, and their old habits. mom's younger sisters. i was looking through the e-mails and here's a typical one from october. it was just after the first presidential debate when i went ballistic. on saturday, i attended a meeting of over 500 sisters. as usual, during break time, many sisters i didn't know tell me how much they appreciated "hardball." all of the talk was about the president's debate and my dramatic reaction toet performance.

your viewers love your enthusiasm. so whatever show parodied your presentation missed the positive message. aunt agnes was there talking about how "saturday night live" lampooned me. as usual, you were a good sport about it. and god bless you for the poor, the weak and the elderly. that's mid aunt agnes who's going to heaven. >> thanks to you for tuning in tonight. i'm live in washington, d.c. tonight's lead, moving forward on gun safety. the president pressed ahead again today. he pressed ahead on guns. he's led a full court press to get the country energized about the gun crisis. to move congress to make up and do something. and there's growing evidence that he's making progress and things are beginning to change.

tod today, his spokesman kept up the pressure bluntly saying tlus ii should be a vote to ban assault weapons. >> the president firmly supports reinstatement of the assault weapons ban. he has long supported that. as for the assault weapons ban in particular, i think he said it on sunday in plarticular, i know he believes this needs to come to a vote. and he believes it should come to a vote. >> also, today, a bipartisan gun trafficking bill is gaining more republican support. three republicans join three democrats getting behind the already-bipartisan gun trafficking act. the gun makes its illegal to buy a gun and transfer it to someone who can't pass a background check. democrats and republicans

working together on gun safety. this is progress. >> also today, more signs of fighting the nra, the gun lobby. a group of celebrity activists coming to capitol hill, calling for congress to act now. they're part of the group and this is a demand they continued to make as part of the plank. >> congress must now act on a sensible plan to keep assault weapons out of our neighborhoods, out of our schools and guns out of the hands of dangerous and compromised people. >> doing nothing has failed. >> to people who questioned the potential effectiveness and/or practicality and to people who say we won't catch everybody, i say doing nothing has failed. >> i'd like assault weapons eliminated.

assault weapons, they were invented for war. they shouldn't be on our streets here. >> i'm just here to support the president of the united states. the president of the united states is, you know, our boss. the president and the first lady are kind of like the mom and the dad of the country. and when your dad says something, you listen. >> the gun issue is at the top of the president's agenda. look at how far we've come. in 2012, 43% of americans wanted stricter gun control laws. that number went to 58% by the end of last year. that's a 15% spike. this is no longer an issue no one is talking about. no longer an issue politicians are afraid to talk about. the president has figured out

how to unlock a locked issue. will people around the country continue to join his call? >> a co-sponsor of the trafficking bill and nia malika henderson, reporter for "the washington post." let me go to you first, congresswoman. let me ask you, do you have a feeling that there's a different sense in this debate now? >> absolutely. there's growing momentum. we introduced our bill with two republicans. it's bipartisan. i introduced it in the last congress and no republican will go on it. that is a big change. today, we picked up three more republicans and we're going to pass this bill. it's a common sense measure that everyone can get behind. it will take guns out of the hanlds of criminals and stop the flow of guns to criminals.

>> now, you had proposed this last year and couldn't get any republicans. and now you're adding republicans? >> there is a change. and very important, reverend, there is no effect what so ever on law-abiding gun ownership. there's no reason why every nra member isn't supporting this bill. in fact, one of the republicans supporting it was an active nra member and talked about how everyone should be supporting this bill and stop gun trafficking. most people find it unbelievable that it's not a felony already. >> nia, how can someone not say that their right to not have allowed someone to pass a gun onto someone that can't pass a background check. i mean, it's hard for any member of congress to co-sponsor that? >> i think over the last couple of years, you see a very power f ful nra.

i think you see some cleavages with the republicans being such a knee jerk supporter. i think it is surprising that we're still having this conversation. it's certainly a testament to the president getting out there, taking it to the public. there is widespread support for many of these issues, the assault weapons ban as well as closing the loopholes. i think where the rubber meets the road, however, will be the assault weapons ban. you see the movemented in congress around the individual and initiatives like gun trafficking, like the background checks. so the assault weapons ban is going to be -- >> congresswoman, are you hearing off the record, not divulging any names, but off the record, are you hearing any conversations among some of your republican colleagues that are encouraging? all of that is shifting from where it was? >> i think eric cantor's statements were very ip spiring.

there's a new sense of urgency. the american people have bb very clear that they want to sfop the threat of gun violence across america for our children. and they want to see something get done. they want to see us to come together, to compromise and make their lives better. and the president is totally behind this and he's making a difference. clearly, the american people are there and when you look at requiring criminal background checks, 91% ban assault weapons, 60% limit ammunition sales. >> even with nra members, you see the majority of those folks saying background checks are a place to go in terms of rilimitg

the flow of guns to criminals. but i think the assault weapons, ban, even if that doesn't necessarily have a chance, if you look at the amount of killings that go on every year, 11,000, 12,00 or so killed every year by guns, the majority, 95% are killed by handguns. so if they are able to pass some of these measures around gun trafficking, that would do a lot in terms of stemming the flow of crime to some of these areas. >> congresswoman, you don't have the big lobbyist on the other side. but this seems to be a showdown between the big guy and a common american. is that how it's being felt and played out to the colleagues? >> the american people are making themselves heard. they want change. sandy hook elementary massacre was a wake-up call to all americans. we have to do something. we can't continue as we are. we'll just have more murders. another thing that the bill does

is that it makes the straw purchasers, it gives them real penalties. now they just get a slap on the hand. we need to give law enforcement the tools to make our streets safer. and they literally came and testified before congress and asked for the trafficking and guns to be made a felony and for stricter penalties for straw purchasers, those who purchase the guns for criminals or for other people who could not pass a background check. and remember what happened in webster, new york? on christmas eve, ten days after sandyhook massacre, he killed two firefighters and i doubt that his neighbor would be buying a gun for him, a convicted felon, if she knew she could be facing 20 years for doing such an action. so we need tougher enforcement and we need tougher laws on the books. and these bills do that. >> you know, we have two sobering kind of reminders today, nia malika, what this is all about.

first, the white house announced that it will honor the people that died protect the students at sandyhook elementary school. four people will be among the recipients of the 2012 president recipient's medal. these are people who put themselves in harm's way and was killed protecting these young babies. and then you have celebrities, and you were there, congresswoman. i talked to martin luther king, iii today, he and kerry kennedy, who both of them dealt with the violence, the killing of their father's firsthand. and they joined other celebrities to speak out. and it was powerful. listen to this. >> we live in a nation that creates a culture of violence. and that is what we've accepted. but when americans come together and stand up and say enough is enough and we're not going to

take it anymore and we're going to act in a civil way, then this legislation perhaps is the first thing that needs to occur. >> i was four years old when my uncle, president kennedy, was killed by a man with a gun. and i was 8 years old when my father, too, was gunned down. we passed the gun control act of 1968 for my uncle, my father, martin luther king and malcolm x. >> we passed a gun control act in '68 after the killing of dr. king and robert kennedy and malcolm x. certainly, we can do it now. quite a challenge from kerry kennedy. >> indeed, the king and the kennedys, these were mayor. and to have them speak out, i think, will resonate with many people. again, i think the folks who are on the gun control side of this debate have really turned a corner.

it used to be that the gun lobby had all the energy and the passion. but in the wake of sandyhook, you've seen a real seat change. going forward, you're going to see some real change. >> well, it's encouraging. and certainly, congresswoman, who we know is a real fighter in getting republicans on your side is progress. nia malika henderson, thank you for coming. i know we've been dealing with a well-financed gun lobby, but when you see babies being buried, sometimes your money can't be spent against the atrocities that people are facing. people just don't want to hear it anymore. i believe. thank you both for your time tonight. on his birthday, republicans are breaking reagan's 11th commandment. thou shall not speak ill of fellow republicans. plus, president obama

winning on issue after issue, even the right wing propaganda machine is changing. and fox news back pedals from an ugly hillary clinton smear. we have the tape. big show tonight, live from washington. stay with us.

have you joined the "politics nation" conversation on facebook yet? we hope you will. today, our fans were talking about the celebrities coming out to push for new gun control. we asked folks to predict whether folks will pass an assault weapons ban. esther says i believe if enough make their voices heard, something positive will get done. rhea says i sure hope so. it just makes sense. laura is optimistic, too.

rock on, chris rock. no backing down to the nra bullies. we want to hear what you think. please head over to facebook and search politics nation and like us to join the conversation that keeps going long after the show ends. [ angry gibberish ] i took something for my sinuses, but i still have this cough. [ male announcer ] a lot of sinus products don't treat cough. they don't? [ male announcer ] nope, but alka seltzer plus severe sinus does it treats your worst sinus symptoms, plus that annoying cough. [ breathes deeply ] ♪ oh, what a relief it is! [ angry gibberish ]

republicans are divided on just about everything these days. but there's one thing they still all agree on. they think ronald reagan was great, just great. >> well, i really liked to know ronald reagan a little bit. and i really liked him.

>> mitt romney understands, like ronald reagan did. >> ronald reagan flew this plane. >> to paraphrase ronald reagan, there's so much manure around here, there's got to be a pony someplace. >> today would have been his 102nd birthday. but republicans aren't rolling out the birthday cake. instead, they're spending the day ignoring his famous 11th commandment. thou shall not speak ill of any fellow republican. that's right, they're at each other's throats. karl rove and the gop elites are trying to take down the tea party. and the other side is fighting back. >> our object is not to be for the blirkment. it's to be for the most conservative candidate that can win. >> our biggest problem is barack obama. and we're being stabbed in the back. >> karl's filled the void. somebody's got to be, to some

extent, a gate keeper keeping morons from running from office. >> so what the tea party people is now they've got two political forces gunning for them. obama and the democrats. and the republican establishment. >> yieks. these folks may say they follow the first ten commandments, but they're having some trouble with number 11. joining me now is perry baker, political editor for degrio and republican strategist. thank you both for coming on the show tonight. good to see you. >> thanks, reverend. >> hogan, let me start with you. what happened to reagan's 11th commandment? >> well, first of all, i love republicans that quote that. and it's a good commandment to have. the problem is, he was up about 60 points when he made that kmentd. of course he doesn't want anyone talking bad about him when he's that high up in the polls. obviously, republicans took it

on the chin. obviously, the white house did not go our way. so, right now, we're trying to jockey that pogsz. we don't need to have republicans be less conservative, we need to have them be more practical about where this country needs to go and how they get their message across. and, right now, what you have is karl rove and rush limbaugh out there. and the fact of the matter is at the end of the day, you have to govern something. you have to get people on your side. and you can't do that by throwing bombs. you can't do that be mean, nasty, yelling rhetoric. a lot of candidates on a daily basis pound the podium and say they're going to do this and going to do that. it's not under the purview of the office, most of the time. and the other part of it is it's a dictatorship. >> isn't a lot of what they're representing, because, to say it

civilly doesn't mean it's still in the interest of the american people. so to have better manners but still bad policy, how is that going to work out for you? >> well, look, look at obama with obama care. i think the issue was polling said it was vastly unpopular. he didn't come back to the table and say i'm going to pull back on that. he pressed for it and got the people on his side. i don't think it's an issue on the republican side of wild ideas or messed up policy. it's the fact that we did a horrible job of explaining why the economy and the republican governors are doing better than the democrat governors. we haven't done a good job explaining our side. but let me be very clear, there are some people on the extreme right side who are not prakt kal about moving government forward. they would rather dig their heels in, make their statements, and not want to come to the

table with the president. we can't get all that we want, let's just get some. it's all or nothing with some people. i don't think you can govern that way. >> how do you explain better that we're not going to give any tax increases to the rich, but we're going to let the middle class and the poor pay more we're going to let unemployment insurance run out on people that can't find work. every tax loophole in the world, we're going to leave it in place and start examining things that seniors need. i mean, how do you explain that better? >> i don't think hogan is correct about this. the core of it they lost two seats in the senate. they were trying to talk about rape and abortion and that was a conserve tiff view. marco rubio is saying you need to take an immigration deal. and the republican tea party is saying no, it's not possible,

it's amnesty. you're wrong. i don't think this is purely about tone. the republican party has to move to the left. karl rove thinks that, marc marco rubio thinks that. it's not guilty aboutish issues, like you just said. when you look at, hogan, the war on women and the legislation they passed in certain states against women's right to choose, it wasn't that women were objecting to the tone, they were objecting to the policy. when you look at they're closing planned parenthood, let's go to a judge. let's teal with the fact that you have a man named paul brown who announced today his bid for the georgia senate. this is a guy who calls evolution and the big bang theory live straight from the pit of health. he sug jeszed the president abide by the soviet constitution

and he called snookie more substantive than the president of the united states. he might say it with a better tone, but how do you take this out there and act like this is something that the american public can even entertain having to represent them in a senate or any other office. >> well, it's not. but those aren't the tenants of the republican party. but this is an out liar trying to throw bombs, as i mentioned, and get there and roll up his sleeves and say how do we get the ball rolling forward. the other guest just mentioned, marco rubio. great example. he's also a tea party member. he's a very conservative man, but he's also very practical. he understands you can't take these hard lines. people talk about reagan all of the time. he had a conversation one time and said listen, shawn, would you be for amnesty? no. would you be for taxes? no. then ronald reagan would never

have been someone you would have voted for. there's this purity test that republicans have now for some reason. he came to the table and got things accomplished. not everything he wanted. he didn't have to give up some of his conservative believes and values. >> i think that on the republican side, we heard people say they don't want to think about compromise. i remember boehner did an interview where he was afraid to use the word compromise. so hogan probably needs to advise some colleagues on the republican party. they don't think of themselves as liberal. it's easy to kovrp miez. most republican voters think of themselves as conservatives.

most of them can't reach a deal. john boehner don't view the compromise as a dirty word on some lefrl. and that's the big challenge that hogan talked about. >> thank you both fwr your time tonight. and we'll keep watching the republicans doing what they're doing. you want change? wait until you see who's now supporting a major part of the president's agenda. but, first, fox news smears hillary clinton and goes into damage control. that's next. to grow, we have to boost our social media visibility.

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it's no surprise hillary clinton has everyone wondering about a possible 2016 run. and just days after becoming a private citizen, this has everyone talking. it's a new web site called "hillaryclintonoffice.com. her 2008 web site actually redirects people here. no question, it's something to talk about. but this is what they're focusing on over at fox this morning. >> is this the face of presidential ambition. days after secretary of state hillary clinton retires, somebody has launched a new web site for her showing off this glamorous new face.

facelift, perhaps? well, that's fuelling rumors about a run for president in 2016. but her aides say it's simply a way for fans, friends and media to reach her. >> facelift? really? within one hour, host steve ducey, kwent inwent into damage mode. a facelift for the site? really? >> showing off this glamorous new face. faceli facelift, perhaps? >> that doesn't sound like a facelift for the web site to me. especially when you're showing a split screen of hillary's face from the new site compared to a

photo of her label two weeks ago. i think it's time to send out a new tweet. the only appearance they should be worrying about at fox is their own. did they think we wouldn't say their sexist about face? nice try, nice try. but face this fact. we gotchya. [ male announcer ] here's a word that could give you peace of mind. unbiased.

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that includes arizona governor jan brewer. remember her? >> things are changing. is the right wing propaganda machine, it seems to be changing, too. >> political analyst dick morris is out at fox news. he follows sarah palin out the door at fox news. this is slow. sometimes halting change. but it's adding up to real, measurable progress. joining me now is joy and ryan. joy, is it me or are you sensing a shift here? >> you know what, rev, the

republican party is really three parties. it's kind of -- i hate to say it, archie bunker sort of party. and for the last four years, the archie bunker wing has been ascended because it was their visceral reaction to obama and they were content to let the evangelicals run in front of them. now, what you're seeing is not so much progress ideologically as the business wing assert itself. they want business reform because other big businesses want those immigration laws fixed. and they want sort of these educational reforms that are more market oriented. so the things that you're starting to see the republican party move on are really things the business wing wants. >> but when you look at the fact, ryan, that is in just the public conversation, that this split in the republican party

and clearly those that are considered more establishment. they say those offend a lot of people that they need if they're ever going to be competitive. let me give you an example. are there options that we should consider between the extremes of mass deportation and a pathway to citizenship for those not lawfully present in the united states. >> well, let me say that i do believe that a pathway to citizenship should be the option that the congress selects. i don't see that as an extreme option. >> the gop still sees a path way to citizen ship as an extreme option?

is this a sign of progress on the right? >> i guess it depends on where you start from the progress. if it's from 2010, then, yes, absolutely, that's progress. but from ten years ago, 20 years ago, no, it's not quite progress. that's not a compromise. they don't seem to understand, or else they're being cute about, what we mean here by comprehensive immigration reform. they'll say we want legalization for these 12 million people and in exchange for that, you get some enforcement provisions, the race-based future flow system, whatever else you want and whatever else the business community wants. they want cheaper engineers to be able to get in from india and south asia to keep, you know, costs down here in the united states.

you can have that. we want this. gld now, joy, the president met with senate democrats today to talk policy. and one all right says president obama spoke briefly, took questions from ten of the senators assembled and then spent an hour chat k with them in smaller groups. obama's spokesman jay carney said the session wu focused on coordinating with democratic senators or dealing with the administration's own efts to support president obama's priorities. how critical, joy, is party unity to the president's seblgd term agenda? >> well, absolutely critical. because harry reid decided not to do full-on filibuster reform, he still has to get through the senate and with 60 votes.

and on the house side, obviously, the same thing applies. now that john boehner has broken the rule, that he's willing to move bills through with democrats as well as republicans, he still needs to hold together enough democrats so you don't see them walk away with some of these ideas. the main thing that the president has going for him is not so much the party unanimity. they are almost sort of left out in the cold because the establishment is pushing them back. they no longer have an interest in them. they want them to sit down and be kwooit because they're embarrassing them. >> five days before the state of the union address and the president seems to have done well pushing forward on his agenda. got passed the fiscal cliff. immigration front and center. gun control ledge slax and everyone some bipartisan group

members of congress coming together on that. it looks as though he's been able to, in some ways, get them to soften on some of their hard position in terms of the economic questions that, around new year's, we thought we'd never get beyond. progress or they're just so weak the president is moving ahead. >> it's progress. it's surprising to people that thought that the plilt kal political system was completely broken. they did have some consequences. it is clear that people made arguments -- politicians made arguments before the american public. they went, they voted. and as a drekt result of that, you see movement in the political process. to people that were becoming overly cynical about the amount of money in politics and how broke they are in washington,

clearly, it's discressed. but it's not entirely brupt. it is still somewhat able to respond to the will of the people. >> joy, the fact is that elections do have consequences. and the fact that the republicans were roundly defeated by the presidential level. and did not do that well in the house, in fact, lost some seats. do you think that some of this moving back to the center and talking about funding more moderate republicans is a result of the fact that they understand that if 2012 didn't work out for them, 2014 could be more devastating for at least some members of the house? >> you know, absolutely, rev. what's broken right now is the right wing of the republican party. they were the ascended part of the party from 2010 on. that tea party wick. they're the one who lost the most house seats. think about joe walsh, think

about allen west. and now that you have the business wing or the republican party reasserting itself, it's always been the business with democrats. it dids business with bill clinton. but think about this. getting republicans to vote for a tax increase, just think about how hujs that was, what a huge, bitter pill that was to swallow for the republican party. they are losing power quickly because the country just isn't with them. and i think the karl rove wing is taking advantage and trying to take the party back. >> well, joy reid, ryan grim, i'm going to have to leave it there. thanks for your time this evening. ahead, meet the gop's answer to president obama. they think marco rubio is their new guy. that's next.

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about governor christie having some fun with his weight on "letterman." he pulled out a donut and made a few self deappreciating facts about diet. but then a former white house doctor went on tv and she had this to say to governor christie. j i'm a republican. i like chris christie, a lot. i want him to run. i want him to lose weight. i worry about this man dying in office. >> today, it was no laughing matter for the governor. heresponded, "she's just another hack looking for her five minutes." and whent onto say she should shut up. he even personally called the doctor today to complain about her armchair diagnosis. but the doctor shot back with a statement. it's unfortunate to hear the

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republicans announce today that florida senator marco rubio will give the gop response to president obama's state of the union on tuesday. rubio is a rising star. karl rove calls him the greatest communique tor since ronald reagan. here's what he was communicating at an event yesterday. >> i think the two parts are more insightful, in my opinion, with all apologies to the biggie fans. there's two sites that mentions bob dole. >> i didn't know that. the thing about his real name, his music, i can tell his real

name, right? >> marco rubio. mr. hip hop. who knew? but what does rubio know about some other big topics? like the ruling on gay marriage. >> i really haven't gone in-depth to the legal arguments being made. >> he doesn't know. what about discrimination against gays? should there be a law to stop it? >> i don't have it in front of me. i'd have to look at it and tell you. >> okay. can we get your take on climate change. >> the climate is always changing. that's not the fundamental question. the question is whether manmade activity is what's contributing most to it.

i understand people are saying there's a significant sicientifc census on that issue. >> another nonanswer answer. senator rubio may know how to bust a rhyme, but is he ready to bust out as a guy answering president obama on the biggest political night of the year? >> one of the things he has to be cautious of is not go down bobby jindal's path. he's the shining star, the one that the rising star of the republican party. he's the 2012 election all of the sudden diminished. he came out of the gate a little too soon. >> do you think from what you've

known and seen of him, those nonanswers on some very serious questions disturbing to put it best. but do you think that he's ready for, as we would say, prime time or not? >> i think what he's trying to do is he doesn't want to slip up. he doesn't want to make a mistake. they're figuring out is he ready for this prime time? >> but the reason that i suspect, and i'm talking personally, that they're using him is because of the latino vote. i mean, he is not the great communicator since reagan.

and the gop is losing latino support. john mccain got 31%. romney only got 27%. i suspect that rubio is not only being used for his talents. >> i think the republicans are trying to rebrand this. but let's look at rubio's numbers. rubio, among the latinos in florida, he overwhelmingly won the cuban vote. but he didn't win the rest of the latino vote. when you look at history where he actually looks at, he attacks, for example, private education.

and i think, again, that's the only way you're going to win the latino vote is to start talking to them straight. >> is he a leading contender for 2016. and does this further embellish if he does well on tuesday night? >> again, they're reintroducing the brand. and he's the headliner for that. he can't backtrack like he did so quickly on immigration.

>> so on climate change and a lot of things, he's all over the place. >> he basically has to identify the problem with the republican party. i also encourage him to start talking a little bit about he keeps saying he doesn't believe in govt entitlement programs. unfortunately, right now, the government is using entitlement programs. >> you can always keep quoting biggie. maria, thanks for your time tonight. we'll be right back. [ male announcer ] wouldn't it be cool if we took the nissan altima

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